Slang terms at the Front - The British Library Slang terms at the Front Julian Walker explores the growth of slang used by soldiers in the trenches from describing food to alternate names for allies and enemies. Food The limited diet of the British soldier in the front line included Tickler’s Plum and Apple Jam, known as ‘pozzy’ (possibly from a South African word for ‘preserved food’), ‘biscuit’, a hard-baked bread that had seen service for many years in Britain’s armies and navies, and ‘bully beef’, whose name may have come from the French boeuf bouillé (boiled beef) or possibly from the picture of a bull’s head on many tin designs. ‘Gippo’, stew or thick gravy, probably derived from a term used in the 17th and 18th centuries to denote a kitchen servant. Rum was delivered to the front in jars labelled SRD, interpreted as ‘seldom reaches destination’. Available behind the lines in French bars were ‘Bombardier Fritz’ (pommes de terre frites – chips) with ‘oofs’ and ‘pang’, and ‘plonk’ (vin blanc – white wine).

Experiences common to European armies at the time – poor food and the logistics of transport – provided similar terms for poor quality butter or margarine: ‘axlegrease’ and the German Wagenschmiere (wagongrease). Soldiers grew adept at getting hold of food by various means; terms included ‘mumping’, ‘winning’, ‘cadging’, ‘humming’, ‘making’, ‘boning’, ‘souveniring’ and ‘hot-stuffing’. Some of these terms were invented at the time while others dated back centuries. Cook book for the trenches Cookbook for soldiers in the trenches published in 1915 giving simple recipes that could be made with few ingredients. Free from known copyright restrictions Materiel Many of the terms for weapons and artillery were remarkably similar on both sides of no man’s land, indicating a similarity of attitude, that the soldier had two enemies, the opposing forces and the war itself. Germans and British used the same terms for the German stick-grenade – a potato-masher – both sides had a ‘Black Maria’, and both sides used a German name for an aeroplane – a ‘Taube’.

Some of these terms became indelibly associated with the war: ‘whizz-bangs’ speaks explicitly of the soldier’s experience of knowing how to identify a particular kind of incoming shell, and what action might be worth taking. ‘Jack Johnson’, referencing the black heavyweight champion boxer, was for a shell which created a large amount of black smoke. ‘Moaning Minnie’ referred to the German trench mortar or Minenwerfer, the term carrying overtones of familiarity and humour. Names for troops: ‘Tommy’ and ‘Foot Slogger’ Documentation of ‘Tommy Atkins’, the archetypical name for the British soldier, dates back to 1815. ‘Tommy’ became immortalised in the first of Rudyard Kipling’s Barrack Room Ballads, published in 1892: O it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' “Tommy, go away”; But it's “Thank you, Mister Atkins," when the band begins to play, The band begins to play, my boys, the band begins to play, O it's “Thank you, Mr. Atkins," when the band begins to play.

The name ‘Tommy’ was used universally throughout the First World War, by both sides. Some correspondence to The Times in 1914 indicates that not everyone felt well-disposed towards the name. ‘An Ensign of 1848’ wrote on 23 October: ‘May I ... suggest that the time has now come ... to put a period to the use of the nickname ‘Tommies’? ... To hear these British soldiers referred to in depreciatory patronage as ‘Tommies’ by those who stay at home ... is unseemly and exasperating.’ Three days later another reader wrote that if you were to ask ‘a company of Garrison Artillery what they think of the name and of the verses in which it was first enshrined the reply was startling and anything but complimentary to the author of the verses.’ It is possible that this was a matter of opinion which differed between individuals, regiments, platoons, and any groupings of soldiers.

Certainly there are clear indications of its being used by soldiers: the trench paper The Salient for Christmas 1915 advertises The Buzzer, the paper of the 49th (West Riding) Division, ‘written by Tommies for Tommies’. But many ‘Tommies’ preferred the terms PBI (poor bloody infantry) and ‘something to hang things on’, referring to the amount of kit they had to carry. Tommy's diary. Chronicle of a fallen English man We have been unable to locate the copyright holder for . Please contact copyright@bl.uk with any information you have regarding this item. ‘Foot-slogger’ – ‘Foot slogging over Belgian ways’ was noted in the article The Route March, in the 5th Gloucester Gazette 5 May 1915 – was originally ‘foot-wabler’ or foot-wobbler’ in Grose’s The Vulgar Tongue (1785), a term of contempt for the infantryman much used by the cavalry. Related names were ‘gravel-grinder’, and ‘mud-crusher’.

There were similar terms in French and German, German terms being particularly graphic – Dreckfresser (mud-glutton), Kilometerfresser (kilometre-glutton), Fusslatscher (foot-shuffler), Lakenpatscher (mud-crusher). According to Partridge only the Germans were resigned to the term Kanonenfutter, ‘cannon-fodder’. [1] German soldiers also called themselves Schweissfussindianer – ‘Indians with sweaty feet’ – which had an interesting counterpart in a term for British soldiers: 1000 Worte Front-Deutsch (1925) states that after ‘Tommy’ the main German epithet for British soldiers was Fussballindianer – ‘football Indians’. Allies and enemies A healthy cynicism typifies the self-parody to be found in the extended ‘alternative abbreviations’ of English, such as Rob All My Comrades (RAMC, Royal Army Medical Corps) or Rotten Fiddling About (RFA, Royal Field Artillery).

It had counterparts in the German Fährt Alles Kaput (Everything goes kaput) for FAK (Freiwilliges Automobil Korps, the Volunteer Automobile Corps), or Mord-Gesellschaft Klub (Murder Company Club) for MGK (Maschinen-Gewehr Kompagnie or Machine-gun Company). For the British soldier there were several terms used to describe the soldier opposing him. Turkish soldiers were referred to as ‘Jacko’, ‘Jacky’, ‘Johnny Turk’ or simply ‘Abdul’, while Austrians, if encountered, qualified for ‘Fritz’. ‘Johnny Bulgar’ was the enemy faced in Salonika. The Portuguese were known as ‘Pork and Cheese’ and ‘Tony’, but more often as ‘Pork and Beans’, the name of a meal soldiers at the Front recognised all too well. ‘Sammy’ was used for American soldiers, who often called themselves ‘guys’; Italians were referred to as ‘Macaroni.’ The term poilu was used widely for the French soldier both amongst the French, and occasionally by their British and American allies – French soldiers themselves preferred les hommes or les bonhommes, according to Brophy and Partridge.

Meaning ‘hairy’, poilu is supposed to have originated in a story by Honoré de Balzac, Le Médecin de Campagne (1834), in which a group of French soldiers are required for a deed requiring particular courage. In this story only 40 soldiers in one regiment are deemed to be assez poilu, hairy enough. Reports of the ruthlessness of the German army in China in 1900 refer to the use of the ‘Hun’ by the German Emperor as a symbolic ideal of military force, and thus the word was in place to be applied in 1914, especially in association with concepts such as ‘atrocities’ . ‘Who’s afraid of a few dashed Huns?’ shouted Francis Grenfell, just before his death in 1915 during the Second Battle of Ypres. ‘The Hun’ and ‘the Boche’ (or ‘Bosche’) stayed in use throughout the war, though Fraser and Gibbons claimed that only the Royal Flying Corps used ‘Hun’ regularly.

[2] ‘The boche’ or ‘boches’ (or ‘bosch/bosches’), with or without a capital B, was a French word, which arrived through contact with French forces in 1914, and is said to have derived from French slang caboche, meaning ‘rascal’ or ‘German’, or from Alboche, a variant on Alleman. A writer in the Western Daily Press, 15 October 1915, claimed that les Alboches developed into les sales Boches (‘the dirty Boches’), which provided the word Boches. Digger dialects: slang phrases used by Australian soldiers Dictionary compiled in 1919 of slang used by Australian troops. The book is called Digger Dialects after the colloquial name for Australian soldiers. The British also used ‘Alleyman’ adopted from the French word for German, Allemand: 'I got up toot sweet and off I ran And nearly stopped a bullet from an Alleyman'. [3] ‘Fritz’ was used throughout the war.

From 1917 it was the only term used by Corporal FR Ingrey, in his diary, while the variation ‘Fritzies’ was a popular term among American soldiers. [4] By 1916 the term ‘Jerry’ was in general use. Though the Daily Express had quoted the word on 3 March 1916, on 12 September 1916 it was clearly necessary to explain it further: ‘“Jerries” – that is the “official” Irish designation of the enemy.’ By 1918 it was used frequently, as in ‘Jerry had a machine-gun on us’ [5] . The term carried more familiarity and weariness than hate; in Kipling’s A Madonna of the Trenches (1923), portraying something of the reality of being shelled, the enemy is ‘Jerry’ rather than ‘the Boche’. From 1916 the term ‘German’ was common.

Battery Flashes by ‘Wagger’ (CW Langley) 1916, reports the use of ‘Germings’ for Germans, while the diary of Lieutenant AB Scott uses ‘Hun’ in 1916, ‘Boches’ and ‘Huns’ until Spring 1918, but ‘Germans’ from Summer 1918. Among American soldiers the term ‘Heinie’, from Heinz (Heinrich), was common. According to Eric Partridge, the Germans had their own names for specific branches of the armed forces: Ernst or Ernest for artillerymen, Fritz or Otto for infantryman, and Franz for an airman. [6] The helmet finally adopted by the German infantry reinforced the use of the term ‘squareheads’, which had been in use to describe German soldiers since at least 1906. On 9 October 1914 The Manchester Guardian in a discussion on German national characteristics stated that ‘It is the shortness of the German head that gets him the nickname “squarehead” in England and America and “Têtecarrée” in France.

Germans themselves, by the way, say that it is the Austrian Germans who are the “squareheads”.’ But the correspondent dismissed the generalisation as unhelpful. Footnotes [1] Eric Partridge, Words, Words, Words (New York: Books for Libraries Press, 1933). [2] Edward Fraser and John Gibbons, Soldier and Sailor Words and Phrases (Detroit: Gale Research Company, 1925). [3] Song collected by Pioneer R Walker, quoted in F T Nettleinghame, More Tommy’s Tunes, (London: Macdonald, 1918). [4] R H Kiernan, Little Brother Goes Soldiering (London: Constable & Co, 1930). Glossary of WWII RAF Slang & Terminology GLOSSARY OF WWII R.A.F. SLANG & TERMINOLOGY RAF cartoon from WWII . A/c: aircraft. Acc or Trolley Acc: Accumulator (battery) used to start aircraft engines on the ground. Ack: under the old phonetic alphabet, "Ack" stood for the letter "A", thus "ack-ack" was "A-A" or anti-aircraft artillery.

Adj.: short form for Adjutant - the administrative assistant to the CO of a squadron. Air Commode: Air Commodore. Airscrew: the complete assembly of three or four propellers, hub and spinner. Aircrew: the men who actually flew the bomber into battle. A.M.O.: Air Ministry Orders. See "bumph". Anchor: one who waits too long to drop by parachute. Angels: a term used in airborne radio communications. One angel was 1000 feet, thus "angels 13" was 13,000 feet of altitude. AOC: Air Officer Commanding. Armourer: ground crew responsible for bombs, defensive ammunition, flares etc. Arse end charlie: rear gunner (R/AG). Arsy-tarsy: Aircrew Reception Centre. Bale or bail out: to leave an aircraft by jumping - hoping that some "clot" had packed your 'chute correctly. Bag: collect/secure, possibly illegally. Bags of: a great amount, as in "bags of flak over the target". Balbo: large formation of aircraft. Balloonatic: member of Balloon Command. Banana-boat: aircraft carrier.

Bang on: to be right on target. By extension, to be right on the mark about any observation (also "spot on"). Basher: man, chap, fellow in a particular trade e.g. "stores basher". Battle dress blues: woolen working uniform. Bandit: enemy aircraft. Beatup: to fly very low over a populated airfield. Beehive: very close formation of bombers (hive) with fighter escort (bees). Beer-lever: joystick. Belt: to travel at a high speed or to hit target heavily. Belt up: be quiet. Best blues: parade uniform. Binding: whining about conditions. Black, a: something reprehensible, e.g. "he's put up a black with the CO about the mess he made of the march-past". Blighty: the U.K. Blitz time: the time briefed for all aircraft to pass over target. Blood-wagon: ambulance. Bloody: at the time this was fairly heavy duty profanity, often made more mild by transliteration to "ruddy". Blue: used by the Australians in reference to anything that was red. Blue, the: the desert.

Boffins: scientific or technical types who worked on new aircraft developments. Bog: a latrine - also "biffy". Bolshie: a crewman who took a "dim view" of service "bull". Boomerang: an operation that required one to return to base with a "u/s kite". Boost: the amount of supercharging given to an engine to increase power. Bowser: tanker truck or "lorry" used to refuel aircraft "down the flights". B.P.D.: Base Personnel Disposal - where you went when you were "O.T.E.". Brass, the or Brasshats: commanding officers at the Wing or Group level, so called because of the amount of gold braid found on hats of Group Captains, Wing Commanders and Air Vice Marshalls. Brassed off: extremely unhappy. Also "browned off". Brew up: to prepare a pot of tea. Briefing: a meeting of all crew before an operation to receive instructions for the op. Brown Jobs: the army - also "pongos" and "squaddies".

Brown, to get one's knees: to have spent time in the "MTO" - because of the heat the wearing of uniform "KD" shorts was necessary. Buggers, to play silly: to fool around - not take job seriously. Bull: the formalities of the service - parade ground bashing, saluting the King's commission, etc. Bully Beef: a "gourmet canned meat product" consisting largely of fat, so called because of the Bull on the front of a tin of Hereford Brand corned beef. A staple food on Italian airfields. Bumph: useless paperwork. Bundoo, the: the boondocks - see "blue". Burton: "Gone for a Burton" - killed in action - from an old beer commercial for Burton Ale. Bus: an aircraft. Buy it: see "Burton". As in "Fred almost bought it over Verona last op". Also to "buy the farm". Caterpillar Club: a club for those who had survived by jumping out of their aircraft and using their parachutes. The club pin was a small caterpillar (representing the insect that made silk for the parachutes) and was given by the maker of parachutes.

Chain Gang: aircrafthands, General Duties. Chairborne division: RAF personnel working in offices. Chance light: powerful light at end of runway which could be requested by a pilot in difficulty. Chiefy: Flight Sergeant. Chop, to get the: see "Burton". Chuffed: extremely happy. Chum: equivalent to the American "buddy" as in "wad'ya want chum?" Circuits and bumps: a pilot training exercise in landing an aircraft and immediately taking off again. Equivalent to the American term "touch and go". Civvy street: what you did before or after you were in the R.A.F. Clapped out: an aircraft or person nearing the end of its useful life - worn out, tired. Clobber: the clothing and equipment it was necessary to wear in a wartime bomber. Clot: a person whose intelligence should be questioned. CO: Commanding Officer. Cockup: a situation that has become extremely disorganized (from the term "cocked hat"). Cookie: a 4000 H.C. bomb consisting of two light cased cylinders welded together and filled with amitol high explosive.

It had the aerodynamic shape of a brick and was used to demolish large structures - also called a blockbuster. Coned: when one searchlight, often radar controlled, picked up an aircraft all of the others in the target area would swing onto that aircraft, thus "coning" it - then the flak would be "poured into the cone". Conservatory: cabin of a plane (from the perspex on three sides). Corkscrew: evasive maneuver performed when attacked by night fighter - sharp diving turn to port followed by sharp climbing turn to starboard. Cricket: German night fighter plane. Dalton Computer: early mechanical hand held computer used in air navigation. Darky: a system of radio signals whereby an aircraft that was lost could get assistance to return to base. Debriefing: where all crews met with the Intel Officer to share what had happened on the raid. Deck: the ground. Desert lily: urinal made from tin can. D.F.C.: Distinguished Flying Cross - medal awarded to ranks of warrant officer and above for conspicuous bravery or long term excellence while on active service in operation against the enemy.

D.F.M.: Distinguished Flying Medal - same as a D.F.C., but for ranks of Flight Sergeant and lower. Dicey-do: a particularly hair-raising operation. Dim view, to take a: to view with skepticism or disapproval. Ditch: to perform a landing in the "drink" - usually when one's a/c was unable to fly any more. Dicky or 2nd Dicky: an inexperienced co-pilot flying with a veteran Wellington crew. Dicky flight: a training flight where an inexperienced operational pilot would go with an experienced pilot on a real op. Dicky seat: the seat originally designed for a second pilot in the Wellington - often used by the bomb aimer in the Middle East and Italy until near the target. Dobhi: one's laundry. Dope: nitocelluloid liquid, similar to nail polish, used to tighten and harden the fabric covering of a "wimpy". Down the flights: the area on an airfield where the aircraft were serviced between ops. D.R.: dead reckoning navigation. Based on intended track, airspeed and time modified by wind speed and direction. Drink: an ocean, river or lake. Drome: aerodrome - an airfield.

Driver, airframe: a pilot. This term was a play on the way that the RAF quartermaster labeled everything, such as "Gloves, Airman, For the use of". Duff: bad or not accurate, as in "duff gen". Elsan: chemical toilet carried on board Wellington aircraft. ENSA: entertainment troupe. E.P.I.P.: type of marquee tent (Egyptian Pattern, Indian Production). Erk: ground crew - from the Cockney pronunciation of aircraftsman. ETA: estimated time of arrival. Faithful Annie: An Avro Anson - a twin engined aircraft usually used for training or transport. Finger, to remove one's: to hurry up and/or to pay attention. Fishheads: the navy. Fitter: ground crew responsible for engines and related controls. Flak: antiaircraft fire. From the German, "FLugAbwehrKanonen'. In reports "heavy flak" did not refer to the concentration or degree of flak but to the caliber observed.

"Heavy flak" referred to anything of 88 mm and up while "light flak" consisted of quick firing 20, 30 or 40 mm. guns. By extension flak came to mean any grief given to you by anyone else. Flame float: small incendiary device that would float after being thrown out down the flare chute. The rear gunner would center the "pip" on his reflector sight on the point of light and then read off the degree of deviation from a scale on his turret ring - this would provide the navigator with the degree of wind drift blowing the aircraft off track. Flamer: aircraft shot down in flames. Flaming: mild, all purpose expletive. Flaming onions: anti aircraft tracer. Flannel: to avoid the truth, to try and bluff one's way or to deceive. Flap: as in "theres a flap on" - excitement or some especially chaotic event. Flare path: a row of lights (either kerosene gooseneck flares, or, on a more permanent base, electric lights) that marked the boundary of the runway for taking off and landing.

Flight: a bomber squadron was often divided into two Flights - "A" and "B" consisting of 6-8 aircraft and crews and commanded by a Squadron Leader who was the Flight Commander or Leader - "A" Flight aircraft were lettered from A-N and "B" Flight from M-Z. Flying brevet: cloth insignia worn on all uniforms including battle dress to indicate your aircrew trade. Pilots' brevets were always two winged. All other crew wore a single wing with their trade marked inside a circular area at the base of the wing. Flying log: every crew member was required to keep a flying logbook of every flight he took including air tests, transport, training and operational flying. This book was signed by the Flight Leader each month and by the C/O of the squadron or the various Trade Leaders at the end of the tour (eg: a Bomb Aimer's log would be signed by the Bombing Leader, The Gunner's by the Gunnery Leader etc.). Form 78: RAF form also called Aircraft Movement Card which followed the aircraft from the manufacturer to its final resting place.

Form 540: pages of this form make up the Operations Record Books (ORB), which included columns for date, aircraft type and number, crew, duty, time up, time down, details of sortie or flight, plus references and summaries. Form 700: R.A.F. Form signed by the captain of the aircraft taking responsibility for the aircraft from the ground crew. Fort or Fortress: Boeing B-17 bomber. Flown by USAAF out of Amendola and Tortorella as part of 15th Airforce, it was not used as a bomber in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations by RAF. Frozen on the stick: paralyzed with fear. Fruit salad: crew would wear only the ribbons from their "gongs" in most situations, wrapped around a thin bar and sewn together, worn under the flying brevet. The various Colors of the "gong" ribbons would look like fruit salad in a tin. The term was usually used for someone who had a large collection of ribbons. F.T.U.: Ferry Training Unit - preparation for flying an aircraft out to an active theatre of war. Gallopers: Warrant Officer rank badges.

(courtesy of Steve Skepper) Gardening: sowing mines in rivers, ports and oceans from low heights. Gee: the earliest form of Ground Control Radar installed in Italy. George: the automatic pilot. Gen: information. Either good (see "pukka") or bad (see "duff"). Gen: a person on squadron who knew what he was doing, as in "a gen bod". Gerry or Jerry: German. Get some in: advice given to "sprog crews" who felt like advising "old lags" on their opinion of operational flying. Often paired with "chum" as in, "get some in chum, before you tell your grandmother how to suck eggs". Gharry: originally a horse drawn cart, it came to mean any form of wheeled transport. Gippy-tummy: "the screaming hab-dabs", "the trots in the extremis" - dysentery. Goldfish Club: a label pin and membership card given to personnel who had used a rubber dingy to escape a ditched aircraft. (courtesy of Steve Skepper) Gone for six: dead. Gong: a service medal.

Goolie chit: a scrap of paper or piece of cloth that when shown to the natives of a country over which you might be shot down offered a reward if they would return you to the nearest Allied unit unharmed. Goolies: part of body that if shot off would provide a very nice soprano voice for the remainder of the owner's life - as in "I almost got my goolies shot off, last op". GP: General Purpose Bomb as in "6 x 250 GP". Gremlin: a mythical creature that lived on certain aircraft and caused it to go "u/s" at the most inconvenient times and then could not be located as the source of the problem. Green, in the: all engine control gauges operating correctly. A needle which swung into the "red" indicated a malfunction. Green, to get the: to receive permission to take off, generally expanded to refer to getting permission for anything. To give an aircraft permission to take off the airfield control officer would signal in Morse code using an Aldis Lamp with a green lens. Usually the Morse code signal was the letter of the aircraft. Greens, three: both main "undercart" legs and the tail-wheel down and locked.

This was indicated by three lights on the flying panel. Up and locked would be indicated by "three reds". Grief, to come to: to be destroyed or to get into trouble. Ground wallah: an officer who did not fly (also see "penguin" and "mahogany Spitfire"). Groupie: Group Captain - usual rank of officer who commanded a Wing. Group: a formation of "Wings". Gubbins: equipment or needed material (eg: "has that kite got the gubbins for dropping a cookie?"). Guinea Pig Club: after an incident where aircrew were extremely badly burned they would be sent to East Grinstead Hospital in the U.K. where some of the foremost plastic surgeons of the day performed "cutting edge" surgery. The term was made up by the patients themselves. Many today proudly wear the maroon tie of the club. H2S: early airborne centimetric radar used by Halifaxes. From "How To See" or "hydrogen sulphide" (implying the system "stinks") according to the two most popular legends. Hack: aircraft on squadron used for general communications duties or as the CO's private aircraft. Half-pint hero: a boaster.

Halibag: Handley Page Halifax - bomber used by 614 Squadron in the Pathfinder role. H.C.: High Capacity - see "cookie". Hedge-hopping: flying so low that the aircraft appears to hop over the hedges. Herc: A Bristol Hercules sleeve valve air cooled radial engine of the type used on the Wellington Mk.X. Hop the twig: Canadian term meaning to crash fatally. Illuminator: a crew tasked with dropping flares on a night target so that the following aircraft could aim accurately - usual load was 54 parachute flares. Intel: intelligence officer or intelligence report. Irvin Jacket: Standard R.A.F. Leather Flying Jacket lined with fleece. Jankers: to be put "on charge" for a violation of service discipline. Jerry Can: excellent German invention of heavy duty portable can for holding water, gasoline or other liquid. It quickly replaced leaky tin cans used by RAF and was manufactured in England to the German pattern. Jink away: sharp maneuver, sudden evasive action of aircraft. Juice: aviation fuel (as in "we are low on juice"). Also "gravy". Aviation fuel was 100 Octane gasoline. K.D.: Khaki Drill.

The R.A.F. tropical uniform replaced R.A.F. blue battledress in tropical and desert climates. Keen: eager or reliable - "keen as mustard "- a pun on Kean's mustard powder. KIA: Killed in Action. Kipper Kite: Coastal Command aircraft that protected fishing fleets. Kit: ones belongings, both issue and personal (hence kitbag). Also used to mean equipment, as in "Does that erk have the kit to repair the hole in the starboard wing?". Kite: an aircraft. Khamsin: a desert dust storm. Knot: measure of air or ground speed - one nautical mile per hour (1.150 statute miles per hour). KR's: King's Regulations - see "jankers". Lib: Consolidated B-24 "Liberator" bomber. Line shoot or shooting a line: exaggerating one's accomplishments, usually responded to by the line "there I was upside down, nothing on the clock but the makers name...." L.M.F.: Lack of Moral Fibre - inability to continue on ops. Lose your wool: lose composure. M & V: Tinned Meat and Vegetable Stew.

M.A.A.F.: Mediterranean Allied Air Force. Mae West: inflatable life vest worn over flying suit (thus called because when inflated it made one look like the "pigeon breasted" movie star). Mahogany Spitfire: a desk "flown" by "penguins" and "ground wallahs". M.A.S.A.F.: Mediterranean Allied Strategic Air Force. M.C.: Medium Capacity Bomb as in "500 lb. MC". Mepacrine: standard anti-malarial drug of the day. Mess: the place assigned for the ranks, NCO's and Officers to eat or relax. These were separated and there was a protocol as to who could enter who's mess. Met: Meteorology Officer or weather report. M.I.A.: Missing in action. Mickey Mouse: a bombing panel that consisted of a clockwork distributor and selection switches (sort of like a Mickey Mouse watch). Mob: Royal Air Force. M.T.: Motorized Transport. M.T.O.: Mediterranean Theatre of Operations. M.U.: Maintenance Unit. An airfield where aircraft were taken to be repaired when the work could not be done on the squadron. NAAFI: Navy, Army, Air Force Institute.

An organization which attempted to bring comforts to the crews (tea and buns, cigarettes etc.) to raise morale. N.C.O.: noncommissioned Officer - in the RAF this meant Sergeant or Flight Sergeant. Nickels: propaganda leaflets. Nobby: all purpose nickname for anyone called "Clark" or "Clarke". Originally "clarks" (now almost universally spelled "clerks", but in the U.K. often pronounced "clarks") wore top hats as a sign of their trade. The gentry or "nobs" also wore top hats and thus the clarks came by the name "nobby" because of their "posh" hats. Odd bod: crew member who had lost his crew or who had fallen behind the rest of his crew in number of operational trips and who flew as a "spare" with another crew. Old lag: experienced airman. Old Man, the: the Squadron C/O. On the beam: some stations (but not many in Italy) were equipped with a landing beam which told the pilot he was on the correct glide slope for landing. If he flew too high he would hear a series of morse dots and if too low a series of morse dashes.

The idea was to keep a steady tone in one's earphones. This system also showed up in some aircraft as a set of lights showing that one was on the correct beam or too high or low. Also used for flying on a navigation beam such as Gee or Oboe. The phrase was generally applied to being on the right course of action about nearly anything, as in "I think the Wingco's on the beam about not flying over the Alps again." Op: operation - an attack on the enemy (USAAF term - "mission"). Opsum: Operational Summary - prepared by the Intelligence Officer from debriefing notes recording the results of an operation. Oranges: Vitamin C tablets. ORB: Operational Record Book. The official account of operations flown by the squadron. OTE: Operational Tour Expired. What a crew was after completing 40 operations. OTU: Operational Training Unit. Overload tanks: extra fuel tanks required when the Wellington was operated at its extreme range. Two could be fitted in the bomb bays and one could be fitted on the rest cot in the fuselage. Pack up, to: to break down, as in "My port engine packed up coming out of the target area".

Packet, to catch a: to be on the receiving end of offensive fire, as in "I heard Nobby caught a packet over Verona last night". Penguin: term for ground officers with no operational experience - a bird with wings that can't fly. Plaster: to bomb heavily and accurately. Plonk: cheap Italian wine, also "AC plonk" (AC 2 was the lowest rank in the R.A.F.). Pom: Australian term for the British. Also "Pommy" used as in "What a typical Pommy cockup". Port: the left side of an aircraft as seen from pilots seat. Posted: orders sending a crewman to another station or responsibility. Prang: to crash an a/c or to hit a target well. Press on regardless: unofficial motto of RAF, meant to show "keenness" to fly through adversity to the target - often stupid advice. Many men died "pressing on regardless" of severe icing and "duff" engines and died because of it. Often used in an ironic way to show resignation to keeping on with a task no matter how ridiculous or unpleasant. Also used as an expression to "buck up" those who were depressed about something.

Prune, Pilot Officer: a fictional officer in the R.A.F. training manuals who demonstrated all of the things that could go wrong if procedures were not followed correctly. PSP: Perforated or Pierced Steel Planking (also called Marsden Matting) - steel mats used on newly created airfields to hold the weight of aircraft, used as taxiways, hardstandings, and runways. Pukka: genuine, as in "pukka gen". Pulpit: cockpit of aircraft, also "office". Pundit: a flashing light which signaled a Morse Code letter in order to assist navigation. P.W.: Prisoner of War. US term - P.O.W. Queen Mary: an articulated "semi" trailer used to transport aircraft or aircraft parts by ground to M.U.'s for service or refurbishment. RAFVR: Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve - members of the RAF for the duration of the hostilities. Rigger: ground crew responsible for airframe (special areas might include "instrument basher" and "sparks" to look after instruments and electrical systems).

Roddie or rodded bombs: bomb fitted with a rod in the nose so that it would explode above the ground - used in antipersonnel ops. Ropey: uncomplimentary adjective "A ropey landing", "A ropey type", "A ropey evening", etc. Round: one cartridge of .303 ammunition. Ammunition was measured in number of rounds carried. Runup: to test engines for magneto drop before taking off - also the route taken into the target area before the bomb dropping point was reached. Salvo: bomb selection which released all bombs at the same time. SBC: Small Bomb Container - canister to hold a load of the standard 4 lb. magnesium incendiary bomb - usual load was 6 to 8 SBC's. Scramble: mainly a fighter term. To get airborne as quickly as possible. Scrambled eggs: a reference to the gold braid on high ranking officers' hats. Scarecrow: crews reported aircraft blowing up without evidence of attacks (e.g. tracer), and the story arose that the Germans were firing scarecrow shells to simulate stricken aircraft, so as to demoralise crews.

Scream downhill: execute a power dive. Screamer: bomb that makes a whistling sound as it comes down. Screened: a period after completing a tour when the crewman could not be called on to do operational flying. Scrub: to cancel an op. Shakey-do: see "dicey do". Shot down in flames: crossed in love or severely reprimanded. Shot up: very drunk. Shot to ribbons: totally incapable through drink. Show: performance or situation - ("that was a good show over Budapest" or "he put on a bad show"). Shufti: to look. Six, to hit for a: to score maximum points - to put on a very good show (from cricket) . Skipper: the pilot/captain of the aircraft and crew leader. In the air his rule was law regardless of his rank. S.O.C.: Signed off Charge. Aircraft no longer usable or wanted by R.A.F. Sortie: one aircraft doing one trip to target and back. Spam: canned meat product produced by Hormel in the US. A substitute for real meat (see Bully Beef). Spam can: a B-24 Liberator.

Sparks: term for either the ground crew who looked after the electrical systems or the aircrew wireless operator. Spawny: very lucky. Spoof: a diversionary raid or operation. Spot on: see "bang on". Sprog: a "new boy" fresh from training - inexperienced (also a "sprog crew"). Squadron Leader: rank of officer who usually led a Flight (or two Flights, "A" and "B" on a usual squadron). Squirt: to fire a short burst from machine guns, as in "the rear AG gave him a squirt before we went into the corkscrew". Starboard: the right side of the aircraft as seen from pilot's seat. Stick: bomb selection so that bombs would be released at timed intervals from their carriers in the bomb bay (also to release only a part of bomb load - going around a second time to drop the rest). Strip, to tear off a: to be severely reprimanded by a superior. In extreme cases a "strip" (ie: rank stripes), would be literally be stripped off thus, demoting an airman for extreme problems. Tea: next to gasoline the most important liquid in the RAF.

Tee Emm: R.A.F. Magazine (after Training Manual). Ten-tenths: no visibility because of total cloud cover. Also 10/10ths flak - very heavy concentration. T.D.: time delay fuse setting on bomb which determined when bomb would explode. Theatre or Theatre of Operations: the geographic area where combat was taking place - eg: The Mediterranean Theatre, The Far East Theatre etc. T.I.: Target Indicator - colored pyrotechnic devices dropped by Pathfinder Forces to identify targets, effectively used only after April 1944 by 205 Group. Ticket: pilot's certificate. Tiggerty-boo: all in order (tiggerty from the Hindustani teega). Tin basher: metal worker. Tin fish: torpedo. Twitch: body tremors developed by aircrew after a number of operations - "he's got the twitch" - sign of operational stress. Tommy: after Tommy Atkins (Kipling). Originally used to denote the British infantryman, later to be used by the Germans as "tommi" as their equivalent to "Gerry". U.S. equivalent - "G.I." T.O.T.: time on target.

The time briefed for aircraft to attack target area. Tool along: fly aimlessly. Touch bottom: to crash. Touch down: to land. Tour of Operations: the amount of time or number of "ops" that a crewman had to complete before being "screened". Tracer: a type of machine gun round which glowed as it moved showing the way to the target and allowing for adjustments in sighting. Unfortunately this also gave away bomber's position. Usually every fourth round was a tracer. Trip: an op. Twit: see "clot". Type: a kind of person ( as in: "he's an aircrew type" or "he's a bolshie type"). Two-six (2-6): general base call "down the flights" that all personnel were needed on a job. Umbrella: parachute. Undercart: the undercarriage of an aircraft. Two main wheels and a tail wheel in the case of "taildraggers" like the Wellington. Two main and a nose wheel for "tricycle" aircraft like the B-24. Attempting a landing with the "cart up" was considered a "putting up a large black" for the pilot.

U/S: unserviceable - broken or not available. Vees: a brand of wartime cigarette. Vegetables: acoustic or magnetic mines sowed on "gardening" expeditions to various "beds". VHF: Very High Frequency - Radio band. Vic: aircraft formation in the shape of a V. Usually three aircraft but could be more. Waafize: the substitution of WAAF for male members of a unit. Wad: cake or bun or scone "char and a wad". Waffle/waffling: out of control, losing height; or cruising along unconcernedly and indecisively. Wallah: chap or fellow. Wallop: beer. Wanks: strong liquor. Washed out: to fail as a student pilot or other trade. One was then usually remustered as something more suitable to one's abilities. Weaving: a gentle form of corkscrew. An evasive maneuver to allow gunners maximum view around aircraft. Weaving, to get: to get going, hurry up. Wimpy: Vickers Armstrong's Wellington Bomber - after J. Wellington Wimpy from "popeye" comic strip.

Window: strips of metalized paper cut to length of wavelength of enemy radar to confuse search and control radar - effective on radar controlled guns and searchlights. Wing: unit made up of two or sometimes three squadrons. Wingco: Wing Commander (rank of officer who led a squadron). Wizard or wizzo: excellent - superlative (eg: a "wizard prang"). Yellow doughnut: collapsible dinghy carried on aircraft. Yellow peril: training aircraft. British pilots relied on German sea rescue service during Battle of Britain - Telegraph World War Two British pilots relied on German sea rescue service during Battle of Britain RAF pilots shot down over the Channel during the Battle of Britain had to rely on German search and rescue services to save them from drowning, new research has unveiled. An estimated 80 per cent of downed pilots died over the sea whereas the rate dropped to 50 per cent over land Photo: PA By Thomas Harding, Defence Correspondent 9:00AM BST 31 Aug 2010 The problem became so severe that British aircraft were ordered to try to avoid travelling over the sea because too many being drowned, it has emerged.

Amid the 70th anniversary commemorations this summer it can be disclosed that at least 200 pilots died “needlessly” in 1940 after bailing out over water. The discovery came to light as a result of research into a new account of the battle by the military historian, Dr Richard North. Once they hit the water there was very little chance of survival with only the occasional flier being picked up by a passing destroyer or fishing boat. The German service, that had been set up in 1935, became so effective that RAF chiefs ordered fighters to shoot down the Luftwaffe Dornier 24 seaplane that were unarmed and painted in white with a large red cross. However, it is thought that the Germans might have been using the aircraft for illicit reconnaissance missions. “This was one of the most shameful and disgraceful episodes of the entire war,” said Dr North, author of ‘The Many’ to be published next year. “For an RAF airman to be shot down over the sea was an almost certain death sentence if the German rescue services were not close at hand.

“Many a good fighter pilot was lost who would have been invaluable in the days that followed.” An estimated 80 per cent of downed pilots died over the sea whereas the rate dropped to 50 per cent over land. On Aug 8 it is believed 15 out of 18 airmen who bailed out were lost at sea. Frustrated at the poor rescue effort a New Zealand pilot, Flt Lt RF Aitken, “scrounged” a Walrus flying boat from the Fleet Air Arm and saved 35 British and German airmen over the summer. Air chiefs had assumed that the high volume of shipping in British coastal waters meant that downed airmen would be spotted and recovered. But by August 19, Air Vice Marshal Sir Keith Park, who commanded the fighter group in the south east, ordered his flight controllers not to vector pilots over the sea because “too many were getting drowned”. The critical shortage of pilots came very close to costing the British the campaign and it was only when the dogfights were fought over land did the tide begin to turn.

It was not until 22 August when an emergency meeting was held under the chairmanship of Air Marshal Sir Arthur “Bomber” Harris to explore the shortcomings of air sea rescue provision. Only in late 1941 did the Air Sea Rescue Directorate become functional and by the end of the war the RAF went from 18 rescue launches to 600 plus squadrons of dedicated aircraft. On the day that celebrated Winston Churchill’s speech on “the few” on Saturday the RAF were once again without a full-time search and rescue service with its Nimrod reconnaissance aircraft mothballed to save cash.

Question: In World War 11 R.A.F. slang what were cookies
Answer: Bombs